$250.00

Instrument: Violin
Level: Beginning

TEACHER CHALLENGE: If for any reason you and your student don't agree this is the the best $250 violin, simply have your student return it within 30 days for a full refund, including postage both ways. We will also send you a $25 gift certificate for your efforts.

Our most popular Franz Hoffmann violin, the Concert is designed to bring out the best performance in students, and is an instrument they can stay with for years.

This beautifully hand carved violin is finished with a quality spirit varnish to bring out the best sound from the aged tonewoods. Consistent quality, playability and visual appeal, combined with its value, make the Concert a violin that stands out. Made by our partner workshop in China, each Concert is inspected and adjusted in Ann Arbor. In 4/4 - 1/8 sizes.

This Franz Hoffmann violin does not come with any accessories, it is the violin only. Most players purchase an outfit to start which includes a case, bow, and rosin, all of which are needed to begin playing. You can find an outfit here.

$500.00

Instrument: Violin
Level: Intermediate

TEACHER CHALLENGE: If for any reason you and your student don't agree this is the the best $500 violin, simply have your student return it within 30 days for a full refund, including postage both ways. We will also send you a $25 gift certificate for your efforts.

Hand-crafted by our SHAR Beijing Workshop then set-up our SHAR Ann Arbor Workshop, the Lamberti® Sonata has raised the bar for intermediate level violins. Our Carlo Lamberti® model LV11 provides exactly what a player expects from a high quality Chinese violin from SHAR: impressive performance, a beautiful finish, and an outstanding value. Set-up in the SHAR workshop with premium fittings and strings. 4/4 to 1/8 sizes.

"This violin will allow advancing small students to make rapid progress with tone development and fast passage. Its powerful and rich tone will delight and surprise a deserving student, especially one who has grown used to the limitations of their present violin." - Charles Avsharian, Shar CEO

"Why do I love the Lamberti violins? Because they allow my students to have a bright, clear-sounding instrument that both projects and is very sweet to the ear. Parents will enjoy hearing their child practice all afternoon on this violin and so will the student."- Rebecca Appert, Violinist, Teacher and Shar Violin Shop Specialist

$489.00

Instrument: Violin
Level: Beginning

A favorite among Suzuki and other Private teachers who prefer a warm tone with strong projection.

The Maestro is a beautifully-performing and dependable violin that possesses all the hallmarks of time-tested craftsmanship. The tone, playability, hand-feel and consistency will keep students motivated, teachers impressed and parents delighted. With an unusually warm, round tone, yet outstanding projection, the Franz Hoffmann Maestro stands a head taller than other student violins at this price. Carefully adjusted and test played in our Ann Arbor workshop, your Maestro is ready to play and sure to delight for years to come. 4/4 - 1/4 sizes.

$2,500.00

Instrument: Violin
Level: Advanced

Inspired by one of the most beautiful violins ever made, the 1737 "King Joseph" Guarneri. This John Cheng model has the unmistakable Guarneri sound - dark, complex and voluptuous, with great projection. The beautiful reddish-brown antique varnish is decidedly dramatic and inspiring. Setup in Ann Arbor by our professional staff, fitted with top-level strings and tested and adjusted by a skilled player to achieve optimal performance.

$975.00

Instrument: Violin
Level: Intermediate

Experience what hundreds of players have discovered about the Bianca, our most popular European instrument. The Bianca is especially in its element performing chamber music, where it blends easily with the other players.

This new addition to the Fischer line offers violinists a warm, round sound that is pleasant for both player and audience. The only Fischer made in Romania, the attention to detail by our partner workshop follows the German tradition of meticulous handcraftsmanship. The result is a fantastic sounding European violin under $1000.

$179.00

Instrument: Violin
Level: Beginning

Recommended for Beginners trying violin to see if they like it. An affordable alternative to a V.S.O. "Violin Shaped Object" that hinders new players success and discourages them from continuing.

As any teacher will tell you, a violin for a beginning student must function flawlessly and play with ease, producing a pleasant sound. The Amadeus does just that and has gone through a three step quality inspection process before you receive it.

Visually appealing, the Amadeus is made of quality maple, spruce and ebony. The hand feel is very smooth, and the sound is enhanced by Overture Premium strings and a carbon fiber tailpiece with 4 built-in fine tuners. The bridge is accurately carved, and the pegs turn smoothly. The outfit includes a shaped foam case, rosin and brazilwood/horsehair bow. Made in China, inspected in our Ann Arbor workshop. Available in 4/4 - 1/16 sizes.

$1,100.00

Instrument: Violin
Level: Intermediate

Developed by Charles Avsharian, SHAR CEO, our original Carlo Lamberti violin is a popular choice among advancing players and their teachers. And for many good reasons: a warm, sweet tone, with a variety of tonal colors, quality Chinese craftsmanship, tasteful hand-varnish, striking wood flaming, premium fittings and strings all combine to make these exceptional violins. Our all-new Lamberti Classic starts with the same qualities, and takes them to the next level. You will notice this in balanced and seamless tone, the buttery varnish, and the exquisite attention to detail in the workmanship. In fact, we believe there is no better violin anywhere in this price range. The Lamberti Classic is Best In Class!

$219.00

Franz Hoffmann® Etude Violin - Instrument Only - 4/4 size

REVIEWED ON: July 06, 2015

Violin With 'Beauty Spot'

Just received a blemished Etude violin. The blemish is obvious...a fairly large spot on the front where the varnish was removed. Also obvious is the overall quality of the violin and it's lovely balanced sound. I did some cosmetic work on the spot so that it's hardly noticeable. Now I've got an instrument that both looks and sounds beautiful.

$1,500.00

Carlo Lamberti® Master Series Guarneri Violin

I'm seriously impressed.

I got this violin for an in-home trial along with another violin in the same price range (Otto Ernst Fischer), and this one was superior in every way. There was really no competition. I loved the tone, feel, playability, and aesthetics. It has a great depth and presence, while maintaining an even brightness. I decided to visit the closest reputable violin shop to me, which is in Boca Raton, to see how this violin compared to several others in the same price range. I spent at least an hour in their shop and played probably a dozen different violins by various makers. They had some really nice instruments, but nothing that was as nice as the Lamberti for the same price. The violin that was the most similar cost $600 more, and the cheapest one they had that actually sounded better was a full $1000 more.
The in-home trial was convenient and the staff was helpful every time I called. I've played this violin every day since I got it and I'm loving it more as time goes on.

$179.00

Franz Hoffmann® Amadeus Violin Outfit - 4/4 size

REVIEWED ON: April 03, 2015

Moved to the Amadeus 1/10 from the Prelude 1/16

When my daughter was ready for the 1/10 size violin, we decided to save some money and just get the cheapest model. All of the experienced people we talked to said that all the small size violins have a tinny sound, so you don't gain much by buying the more expensive models. We got the Amadeus 1/10 with Shar Overture strings and it worked well. The sound quality isn't much different than the 1/16 Prelude with same strings. A little louder, maybe, but mostly the same. We recently moved up again to the 1/8 Carlo Lamberti with Thomastik Vision strings. The sound was SO different that I bought some 1/8 Visions to try on the 1/10 Amadeus. It made a bit of a difference. The tone was similar between the two brands, but the VISION HAD A SMOOTHER AND RICHER TONE on the 1/10 as well. If I had known that, I would definitely have bought the Vision strings for this violin from the start. My youngest will be using the 1/10 Amadeus when he moves up from the 1/16 Prelude. Franz Hoffman violins have stood up to a lot of abuse and worked well for the kids to learn on. Just like my review for the Prelude, I wish the cases were built to accommodate the wooden guides that our teacher glues onto the violins. They seem common enough that I shouldn't have to modify the case, but the violin itself is ok.

$209.00

Franz Hoffmann® Prelude Violin Outfit - 4/4 size

REVIEWED ON: April 03, 2015

Bought the 1/16 Prelude for kid's first violin

We started my daughter on a 1/16 violin, and chose the Prelude with Shar Overture strings. All of these small violins have a tinny sound because of their size, so no surprises there. This violin has held up well and played well for my daughter, and then for my son. I gave it 4 stars because I had to modify the case for the violin to fit, because our violin teacher glues wooden guides onto the violin to teach proper posture and it wouldn't fit with the wrist guide on it. It seems like these guides are common for young students, so the cases should accommodate these types of changes. Also wish they had a higher quality string for the 1/16 size. Bottom line: This violin has worked well and survived a lot of abuse. No reason to shy away from it.

$500.00

Carlo Lamberti® Sonata Violin

REVIEWED ON: April 03, 2015

Reviewed the 4/4 and 1/8 size

I bought the Carlo Lamberti 4/4 after reading a ton of reviews. I love the tone and projection that it has, not to mention the finish is very nice! My daughter just moved up to the 1/8 size and we were able to buy a Carlo Lamberti 1/8 used. My violin has full size Thomastick Vision strings, and this 1/8 came with properly sized Visions as well. The sound and projection out of this little 1/8 was amazing. It doesn't (obviously) have the projection that my full size has, but the tone is rich and full, and my daughter loves the volume. The 1/8 is very much as good quality as the 4/4, and I would highly recommend Carlo Lamberti as a brand. (We have used the Franz Hoffman 1/16 and 1/10 sizes with Shar Overture strings up to this point. They were fine for my kids to start on, and now I think the better tone quality will help at this level of playing. Brand probably would not have made a difference in my kid's ability to play until we got to this size).

$299.00

Franz Hoffmann® Concert Violin Outfit - 4/4 size

REVIEWED ON: March 29, 2015

Wow!!

All I can say is "WOW"!!! I had to return my Hoffman Etude due to a manufacture's defect (BTW: I could not possibly be happier with how Shar handled the issue) and decided to take the opportunity to upgrade. As I am broke, I could only afford to upgrade to the concert violin... what a HUGE difference for $30! Clearly, there is a reason they are willing to guarantee this instrument: I feel like I paid for a beginner's instrument but got an intermediate one. I will be more than happy playing my Hoffman Concert until I can justify (and afford) an advanced model... and when I can, I will definitely come back to Shar: you can not put a price on good customer service!

$500.00

Carlo Lamberti® Sonata Violin

REVIEWED ON: March 21, 2015

Good violin

Before writing a review I wanted to have a decent amount of time with the Sonata. I've had my violin for about 5 months now. The more I play it the more I like it. I haven't been playing that long, but the sound is so much better than the no-name violin I had for the first 3 months of lessons I noticed the difference right away. And I'm not alone, my dog started staying in the same room when I practice, high praise. Again, I'm new and don't really know the proper terminology for describing sound, but here goes my humble attempt. After playing it a short time I noticed when I played a G on the D string the G string starts to resonate along with it, same with the D played on the A string. It gives it a nice rich tone to my inexperienced ear. I picked up my other violin today and it doesn't compare. Originally, when I purchased the Sonata I had planned to upgrade to a better violin as I got better, and have even been saving for one. However, I like the Sonata so much I can't see a need for a more expensive violin in the near future.

$500.00

Carlo Lamberti® Sonata Violin

REVIEWED ON: February 28, 2015

Sweet sounding student violin

I bought this for my beginning daughter because I didn't want to go through the grit-your-teeth stage where both the violin and the playing are screechy, thin and annoying. I wanted to avoid struggling with tuning pegs that weren't really made to move, and strings that slipout of tune often as you play.
This violin fits her perfectly. The tones are clear and uncomplicated in the way that helps a beginning student learn pitch, but not thin and uninteresting. We all like to hear her practice. I think it's an excellent value as we are sure she will keep with it, and she will be able to keep this for longer than a more basic violin.

$1,500.00

Carlo Lamberti® Master Series Guarneri Violin

REVIEWED ON: February 28, 2015

Outstanding Sound

We bought the Carlo Lamberti Master Series about 4 months ago, as an upgrade for my son. He plays constantly and he was straining to get his beginning violin to make the sounds he was trying to make.
What a revelation this choice has been. The set up was very carefully done. It was immediately playable and the sound has been such a pleasure! It has a dramatically richer tone than his first violin. The A and E strings (thomastik Infeld Vision) are sonorous and clear but also so much richer than the very simple tones of his dear beginner violin. The G string particularly has a thick, lush sound that carries incredibly well in performance.
initially we paired this with a Presto Audition bow, but, for my son's playing style, this turned the sonorous quality of the upper strings into almost an echo effect. He is now using a Coda Bow Prodigy very successfully, and experimenting with an R.A. Meinel which is a lighter, somewhat drier sound than the Coda Bow but somehow also very pleasing. He is happily figuring out which he likes for which pieces.
This is a violin with huge heart. It loves my son's passionate playing. If a growl can be said to be velvety then this violin has that kind of growl. What a great choice.